Brora Rangers ended their 50-year wait to get their hands on the Highland League championship trophy on Saturday when Press and Journal deputy editor David Knight handed the silverware to captain Steven Mackay.
The presentation took place after the 2-1 win against Inverurie Locos at Dudgeon Park and it sparked off jubilation amid the Brora faithful which went on long into the night in the Sutherland town.
Mackay said: “It is a fantastic moment for myself and the club. I am very proud we have managed to win the league, as that is one of the reasons I came to this club.
“It wasn’t a great game but we did enough to win it to achieve 95 points. That was our target after we had secured the title at Keith last month. It has been a fantastic season and an equally fantastic day here today.”
The opening exchanges were tentative with neither goalkeeper called into action in the first quarter of an hour. Brora almost broke the deadlock after 30 minutes but David Ross headed Mackay’s net-bound header off the line.
Brora were not to be denied and three minutes later they took the lead. Gavin Morrison’s free kick was met by Ross Tokely and his deft header gave Andy Reid in the Locos goal no chance. There were doubts the free kick should have been awarded as Tokely went over very easily, just outside the box, after the slightest of touches from Greg Mitchell.
Two minutes later it took a brilliant save from Reid to stop a fierce Mackay drive as Zander Sutherland closed in on the rebound.
In the 40th minute Brora doubled their advantage when Andy Greig’s pass set up Sutherland and as Reid came out to close him down the former Buckie Thistle forward calmly chipped the ball over his head and into the empty net.
Right on the stroke of half-time Locos were back in the game when they pulled one back, Neil Gauld cutting in from the left and beating goalkeeper Joe Malin with a dipping drive, the diminutive forward’s 43rd goal of the season.
It could have been 2-2 in the 58th minute when Gauld brilliantly controlled the ball on his chest and fired in a ferocious 15-yard grounder which cannoned back off the inside of the post and away to safety.
Brora replied with an angled drive from Greig which Reid blocked brilliantly and with seven minutes left Brora thought they had doubled their advantage but Mackay’s curling 20-yarder crashed back off the face of the crossbar.
Locos centre forward Gauld, said: “I thought I had managed to score an equaliser but the ball came back off the inside of the post. I thought that it was going to go along the line and into the net at the other side, but somehow it stayed out.
“The goal I did score today was with my left foot. That is a bit of a novelty as not many of the 43 this season have been with my left peg.”